One Dynamite and a Ticket to Nelson, Please

I have a confession to make. I ask only that you keep it strictly between us and that you promise not to judge me.

Okay, here goes.

I had a good time this past weekend at Autumnfest. I mean, a genuinely good time.

There. I said it. My dirty little secret is out. Perhaps I now need to explain, though.

As many of you already know about me, I love to people-watch. LOVE it. It's one of those fascinatingly-simple pastimes that can captive me for hours at a time.

Autumnfest is an annual event held in Woonsocket, RI... an outdoor-type of regional fair, with food vendors, musicians, craft and vendor booths, and even a midway for families. On paper, it's a fairly-typical outdoor fair. However, what separates Autumnfest from the average park fair... the things that elevate this event into the land of absurdity... are its attendees and its constantly-running stage shows. Regarding the attendees: let's just say that it's a unique crowd. From senior French Canadians to urban street-gang types to backwoods, toothless "mountain man" types... people of every race, ethnicity, and age... people consuming mass quantities of a regional sandwich delicacy known as a "dynamite"... this fair has just about every permutation and combination of human being that one could ever hope to envision in a people-watching environment.

As for the stage shows... well... you see, smack-dab in the middle of the park that hosts this outdoor fair there is a stage that's set up for the purposes of providing so-called "entertainment" for attendees of this annual Autumn fair. However, if one were to truly judge by the acts appearing on this stage over the course of the three days, then the word "entertainment" would likely be a bit of a misnomer. The actual acts range from not-quite-ready-for-primetime child dancers to elderly French-Canadian crooners and even accordion players. Any words that I would attempt to use here to describe the "talent" would not do the show justice; it must be seen to be believed.

With the knowledge that one would not find any kind of A-list talent on the Autumnfest stage, you can imagine my surprise when I discovered that the headline act for the first evening of the fair was going to be early-90s pop-music icons Nelson. Yes, that Nelson. The twin brothers Gunnar and Matthew Nelson. Most people who remember Nelson remember them as the extremely-long-haired, spandex-wearing, sons-of-Ricky-Nelson-and-grandsons-of-Ozzie-and-Harriet-Nelson Nelsons. Best known for their pop hits Love and Affection and After the Rain, Nelson hit it big with their rock/pop synthesized sound in the early-to-mid 90s, selling-out arenas and selling millions of CDs.

Since then, however, the Nelson brothers pretty much seemed to drop off of the musical map. For most people, the Nelson band had become nothing more that an answer to a 90s pop-culture trivia question. Only recently had we seen any sign of the Nelson brothers on a national stage, and that was due to Gunnar Nelson's appearance earlier this year on VH1's grade-Z starfest Celebrity Fit Club.

So, whenever I discovered that the Nelson brothers were to appear at Autumnfest, I suddenly found myself powerless to resist attending this fair. It combined the lure of serious people-watching, excrutiatingly-bad local "talent," and a once-major act reduced to playing the pathetically low-rent Woonsocket Autumnfest. Nelson at Autumnfest?? Oh, how the mighty hath fallen. I MUST be there to witness the humiliation!

As far as the people-watching and the bad local performers went, the fair did not disappoint. This was a serious slice of "so bad it's good" heaven. However, when it came to the Nelson brothers, that's when things changed for me. Going into it, I had expected to be adding this experience to the "so bad it's good" list. I had secured a spot immediately at the side of the stage... practically on the stage itself. All that separated me from the stage was a thin slice of cheap latticework (yeah, this festival spared no expense). So... with positioning practically ON the stage, and my camera at hand, I was ready to mock the night away as the Nelson brothers took to the stage. So imagine my surprise (and thus the basis for this confessional post) when I found myself actually ENJOYING the Nelson brothers!It was just Gunnar and Matthew alone on stage; no back-up band, no back-up singers. Just Gunnar, Matthew, and their guitars, acoustic style. From my position at the right of the stage, I was separated from the brothers from about 10 feet. Needless to say, this made for a very intimate show. I felt as if I were in a small bar listening to a couple of guitar players, rather than standing outside with a couple of thousand other people.

Despite the rinky-dink vibe that Autumnfest projects, the Nelson brothers played with enthusiasm and emotion usually reserved for the traditional large-venue concert halls and arenas. Gone were the trappings of their earlier flashy-rock days (the spandex and long-hair are ancient history), and in their place was a pair of serious musicians. And let me tell you - these guys can play! Their guitar skills were nothing short of impressive... and vocally, the brothers were letter-perfect (and if you ever doubted the ability of twins to harmonize, this show would erase those doubts). Of course, they played their biggest hits from the 90s... and thanks to this lower-key, acoustically-styled concert, these were the best versions of those hits that I'd ever heard. They also played several new songs and several songs from their father's 50s/60s/70s collection. In-between songs, they shared some family history and helped to place their dad's songs in perspective.

Despite the frigid temperatures (hovering somewhere in the upper 40s), I didn't want the show to end. Yes, it was THAT good. I know, I know - I'm just as surprised as you are that I'm saying that. But this concert has given me a new respect and a newfound appreciation for the Nelson brothers.

Bottom line: I would have NEVER expected to be departing Autumnfest having actually experienced a "so GOOD it's good" moment. Thank you for allowing to confess this to you.

All in all, I guess that this just goes to prove that we should ALWAYS expect the unexpected. Hey... does that mean that maybe one day I'll actually come to LIKE Bob Dylan and his music? On second thought... nah. Now I'm just getting crazy.


PS - for additional photos from Autumnfest, please visit the Friends of Bad site and click on "pics."